News
Minority investor Societe Mondiale reportedly suspected of influencing decisions without Brazilian watchdog’s consent.
Brazil’s telco regulator Anatel this week suspended two Oi board members appointed by minority shareholder Societe Mondiale, after suspecting them of attending meetings and influencing decisions without first obtaining the watchdog’s consent.
Reuters reported on Tuesday that the suspension will be upheld until officials have decided whether Societe Mondiale requires regulatory approval before appointing members to Oi’s board. Anatel will monitor every Oi board meeting going forward, to ensure Societe Mondiale complies with its order.
Societe Mondiale, owned by activist shareholder Nelson Tanure, appointed the two board members as part of a settlement with Oi’s largest shareholder Pharol. Tanure had been calling for shareholder votes on whether to replace part of Oi’s board and to consider legal action against Pharol. Tanure agreed to stop agitating for change in return for two seats on the board.
Now those new board members, Hélio Costa and Demian Fiocca, have been suspended.
This week’s news emerged amid speculation that Brazil’s government is mulling whether to intervene in Oi’s debt restructuring on grounds that the process is taking too long.
The troubled Brazilian telco filed for creditor protection in June owing 65 billion reais (€17 billion), including BRL15.4 billion worth of liabilities held by regulators and tax authorities, and approximately BRL34 billion held by unsecured creditors.
Oi submitted a debt restructuring plan in September that attracted strong criticism for implying that bondholders would receive new debt in the company that was worth approximately 30% of what they are owed.
Sources cited by Reuters last week claimed that Oi is tweaking the plan so that smaller creditors are the first to be repaid in a bid to speed up the telco’s emergence from creditor protection.
